The Sermon at Benares – by by Betty Renshaw | CBSE Class 10 | NCERT Notes by Arihant

Chapter Summary

Gautama’s Early life

Gautama Buddha was born as a prince named Siddhartha Gautama in Northern India. When he was twelve years old, he was sent for schooling in the Hindu sacred scriptures. Four years later, he returned home and got married to a princess with whom he had a son. He lived a royal life for ten years protected from all the sufferings of the world.

Gautama Feels Sufferings of the World Gautama was 25 years old when he saw the sight of sufferings present in the world. One day, on his way to hunt, he saw a sick man, an aged man, a funeral procession and then a monk begging for alms. The sights had a deep impact on Gautama and he gave upon his royal life and went out to seek enlightenment.

Gautama Seeks Enlightenments

Gautama travelled aimlessly for seven years and then he sat under a peepal tree until he attained enlightenment. He got enlightened after seven days and renamed the tree as ‘Bodhi Tree’ (Tree of wisdom). He began to teach his new understandings and came to be known as Buddha.

As Buddha, Gautama gave his first Sermon in Benares, the holiest of the dipping places on the river Ganges. The Sermon reflects Buddha’s wisdom about a kind of suffering.

Story of Kisa Gotami

Kisa Gotami’s only son had died. She was so grieved that she carried her dead son and went door to door asking for medicines for her dead child. Eventually she met a man who directed her towards lord Buddha who could possibly have a solution for her problem. She went to Buddha and asked him to cure his son. Buddha asked her to bring a handful of mustard seeds from a house where no one had lost a family member. Kisa Gotami went from house to house in search of mustard seeds but she could not find any house where no one had ever died. Tired and hopeless she sat down at the wayside. As she saw the city lights flickering in darkness, she realised that human life has the same fate. She realised that death is everywhere and nobody can escape from it.

Certainty of Death

Buddha held that our life is full ofpain and sufferings. Everyone who is born has to die. It is not possible to avoid death. Everyone irrespective of the difference has to die as death is inevitable for all mortals. He further adds that wise men understand the unavoidability of death. They do not lament, grieve or complaint and are thus peaceful and away from sorrow. If one keeps on grieving, one will suffer both physically and mentally, only those who move on are blessed.